Apparatus and method for computation of a pricing index

ABSTRACT

An information processing apparatus is disclosed which comprises: a first acquiring element for acquiring the number of times information contents are downloaded over a network; a second acquiring element for acquiring the number of times the information contents are reproduced; and a computing element for computing a pricing index for the information contents based on the number of times the information contents have been downloaded as acquired by the first acquiring element and on the number of times the information contents have been reproduced as acquired by the second acquiring element.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an apparatus and a method forinformation processing and a storage medium. More particularly, theinvention relates to an apparatus and a method for informationprocessing and a storage medium for computing a pricing index as a basisfor pricing information contents such as audio-visual information thatmay be electronically copied.

Recent years have seen widespread acceptance of network systemsexemplified by the Internet for use in providing various services.Illustratively, audio information, video information, and computerprograms (generically called AV information hereunder) may betransmitted between locations over a network. Users may receive such AVinformation over the network in a quick and reliable manner.

Generally, product prices are determined by the balance of supply anddemand for each product. However, intangible products such as AVinformation are subject to electronic copying and are theoreticallylimitless in number. The supply of these formless commodities ispractically infinite and is difficult to determine simply. In thisconnection, Japanese Patent Laid-open No. 2000-115163 disclosesillustratively a scheme whereby the price of a content is determined soas to reflect the number of times the content in question has beendistributed over the Internet.

When AV information is to be distributed over a network, it is hard tograsp the amount of demand for such merchandise. Given these factors, ithas been a difficult task to determine prices of AV information that ismarketed over the network.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstancesand provides means and steps for computing a pricing index serving as abasis for pricing intangible information contents to be distributed overthe network.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A first information processing apparatus according to a first aspect ofthe invention comprises: a first acquiring element for acquiring thenumber of times information contents are downloaded over a network; asecond acquiring element for acquiring the number of times theinformation contents are reproduced; and a computing element forcomputing a pricing index for the information contents based on thenumber of times the information contents have been downloaded asacquired by the first acquiring element and on the number of times theinformation contents have been reproduced as acquired by the secondacquiring element.

For the first information processing apparatus of the invention, theinformation contents may include AV information.

A first information processing method according to a second aspect ofthe invention comprises the steps of: acquiring firstly the number oftimes information contents are downloaded over a network; acquiringsecondly the number of times the information contents are reproduced;and computing a pricing index for the information contents based on thenumber of times the information contents have been downloaded asacquired in the first acquiring step and on the number of times theinformation contents have been reproduced as acquired in the secondacquiring step.

A program stored on a first storage medium according to a third aspectof the invention comprises the steps of: acquiring firstly the number oftimes information contents are downloaded over a network; acquiringsecondly the number of times the information contents are reproduced;and computing a pricing index for the information contents based on thenumber of times the information contents have been downloaded asacquired in the first acquiring step and on the number of times theinformation contents have been reproduced as acquired in the secondacquiring step.

A second information processing apparatus according to a fourth aspectof the invention comprises: a holding element for holding informationcontents; a first transmitting element which, in response to a requestissued by another information processing apparatus, transmits theinformation contents from the holding element to the request-issuinginformation processing apparatus over a network; and a secondtransmitting element for transmitting a notification to yet anotherinformation processing apparatus counting the number of times theinformation contents have been transmitted, the notification saying thatthe information contents have been transmitted by the first transmittingelement.

For the second information processing apparatus of the invention, theinformation contents may include AV information.

In the second information processing apparatus of the invention, theholding element may further hold supplementary information attached tothe information contents, and the second transmitting element mayfurther transmit the supplementary information.

A second information processing method according to a fifth aspect ofthe invention comprises the steps of: acquiring information contents; inresponse to a request issued by an information processing apparatus,transmitting firstly the information contents acquired in the acquiringstep to the request-issuing information processing apparatus over anetwork; and transmitting secondly a notification to another informationprocessing apparatus counting the number of times the informationcontents have been transmitted, the notification saying that theinformation contents have been transmitted in the first transmittingstep.

A program stored on a second storage medium according to a sixth aspectof the invention comprises the steps of: acquiring information contents;in response to a request issued by an information processing apparatus,transmitting firstly the information contents acquired in the acquiringstep to the request-issuing information processing apparatus over anetwork; and transmitting secondly a notification to another informationprocessing apparatus counting the number of times the informationcontents have been transmitted, the notification saying that theinformation contents have been transmitted in the first transmittingstep.

A third information processing apparatus according to a seventh aspectof the invention comprises: an acquiring element for acquiringinformation contents over a network; a holding element for holding theinformation contents acquired by the acquiring element; a reproducingelement for reproducing the information contents held by the holdingelement; and a transmitting element for transmitting a notification overthe network to another information processing apparatus counting thenumber of times the information contents have been reproduced, thenotification saying that the information contents have been reproducedby the reproducing element.

In the third information processing apparatus of the invention, theholding element may further hold supplementary information attached tothe information contents, and the transmitting element may furthertransmit the supplementary information.

A third information processing method according to an eighth aspect ofthe invention comprises the steps of: acquiring information contentsover a network; holding the information contents acquired in theacquiring step; reproducing the information contents held in the holdingstep; and transmitting a notification over the network to an informationprocessing apparatus counting the number of times the informationcontents have been reproduced, the notification saying that theinformation contents have been reproduced in the reproducing step.

A program stored on a third storage medium according to a ninth aspectof the invention comprises the steps of: acquiring information contentsover a network; holding the information contents acquired in theacquiring step; reproducing the information contents held in the holdingstep; and transmitting a notification over the network to an informationprocessing apparatus counting the number of times the informationcontents have been reproduced, the notification saying that theinformation contents have been reproduced in the reproducing step.

Through the use of the first information processing apparatus of theinvention, the first information processing method, and the programstored on the first storage medium, a pricing index for informationcontents is computed on the basis of the number of times the contentshave been downloaded and the number of times the contents have beenreproduced.

By use of the second information processing apparatus of the invention,the second information processing method, and the program stored on thesecond storage medium, a notification saying that information contentshave been transmitted over the network is sent to another informationprocessing apparatus which counts the number of times the informationcontents have been transmitted.

Through the use of the third information processing apparatus of theinvention, the third information processing method, and the programstored on the third storage medium, a notification saying thatinformation contents have been reproduced is transmitted over thenetwork to another information processing apparatus which counts thenumber of times the information contents have been reproduced.

Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will become moreapparent upon a reading of the following description and appendeddrawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a typical network system to which thisinvention is applied;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a typical player included in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a typical content server included in FIG.1;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a typical total download count computingsystem included in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a typical total reproduction countcomputing system included in FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a typical pricing index computing systemincluded in FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is a flowchart of steps performed by the player in FIG. 2;

FIG. 8 is a flowchart of steps carried out by the content server in FIG.3;

FIG. 9 is a flowchart of steps executed by the total download countcomputing system in FIG. 4;

FIG. 10 is a flowchart of steps conducted by the total reproductioncount computing system in FIG. 5;

FIG. 11 is a flowchart of steps constituting a pricing index computationprocess performed by the pricing index computing system of FIG. 6;

FIG. 12 is a block diagram of another network system to which thisinvention is applied;

FIG. 13 is a block diagram of a typical meta-pricing agent included inFIG. 12;

FIG. 14 is a flowchart of steps performed by the pricing agent in FIG.12;

FIG. 15 is a flowchart of steps carried out by the meta-pricing agent inFIG. 13; and

FIG. 16 is a block diagram of a typical hardware structure of thepricing index computing system.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a typical network system to which thisinvention is applied. This network system is designed to compute pricingindexes about music that is offered as one of information contents. Inthe network system, a pricing agent 1 is connected via the Internet 2 toplayers 3-1 through 3-n (generically called the player 3 if there is nospecific reason to distinguish one player from another; this applies toother devices as well). The Internet 2 is also connected to contentservers 4-1 through 4-k. The pricing agent 1 includes a total downloadcount computing system 11, a total reproduction count computing system12, and a pricing index computing system 13.

Connected to the Internet 2, the total download count computing system11 receives from the content server 4 a notification that music contentshave been downloaded to the player 3, and counts the total number oftimes the download has been carried out. The total reproduction countcomputing system 12 receives from the player 3 a notification that musiccontents have been reproduced and proceeds to count the number of timesthe reproduction has been effected. The pricing index computing system13 receives a total download count from the total download countcomputing system 11 and a total reproduction count from the totalreproduction count computing system 12, and computes accordingly apricing index that serves as a reference for determining the price ofthe contents in question. Connected to the Internet 2, the pricing indexcomputing system 13 may independently access the player 3 or contentserver 4 for retrieval of diverse kinds of information.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a typical player 3. In the player 3, acommunication unit 21 exchanges information with other devices over theInternet 2. A content storage unit 22 stores content data received bythe communication unit 21 from the content server 4 over the Internet 2.If supplementary information attached to certain contents is transmittedfrom the content server 4, the supplementary information upon receipt isstored in a supplementary information storage unit 25.

The supplementary information comprises such items as names of pieces ofmusic, composers' names, lyricists' names, players' names, publishers'names, names of record companies, lyrics, dates of release, productionnames, record numbers, music management numbers, country names, names ofgenres, and demand setting keywords, corresponding to contents.

A reproduction unit 23 reproduces content data held in the contentstorage unit 22. A reproduction detection unit 24 detects reproductionof contents and its reproduction data by the reproduction unit 23 andoutputs relevant information accordingly. A reproduction locationdetection unit 27 detects where the player 3 is located at the time ofcontent reproduction (i.e., geographical location of the player 3(address of the user of player 3) and its address on the network). Aplayer information setting unit 28 allows the user to set such playerinformation as the type of the player 3 and the purpose of reproduction,i.e., for commercial or non-commercial use.

A reproduction information generation unit 26 generates reproductioninformation on the basis of the following: supplementary informationfrom the supplementary information storage unit 25, reproductiondetection information from the reproduction detection unit 24,reproduction location information from the reproduction locationdetection unit 27, and player information from the player informationsetting unit 28. The reproduction information thus generated istransmitted via the communication unit 21 to the total reproductioncount computing system 12 in the pricing agent 1.

The content server 4 is structured illustratively as shown in FIG. 3. Inthe content server 4, a content storage unit 41 stores content data tobe distributed to the player 3. A supplementary information storage unit42 stores supplementary information corresponding to the contents heldin the content storage unit 41. A keyword setting unit 43 storeskeywords that may be set as desired by a user (i.e., administrator) withregard to contents.

A download data generation unit 44 generates download data by combining:content data from the content storage unit 41, supplementary informationfrom the supplementary information storage unit 42, and a discretionarykeyword from the keyword setting unit 43.

Upon receipt of a request for distribution of contents from the player 3over the Internet 2, a communication unit 45 forwards the request to acontrol unit 46. In response to the request, the control unit 46 causesthe download data generation unit 44 to generate relevant download data.The communication unit 45 transmits the download data from the downloaddata generation unit 44 to the player 3 over the Internet 2 undercontrol of the control unit 46.

The total download count computing system 11 of the pricing agent 1 isstructured illustratively as shown in FIG. 4. In the system 11, acommunication unit 61 communicates with the content server 4 over theInternet 2 and receives information representative of a download count.A storage unit 62 stores information regarding the download countreceived by the communication unit 61. A total download countcomputation unit 63 computes a total download count per content on thebasis of the download counts stored in the storage unit 62 upon receiptfrom the individual players 3-1 through 3-n. Information representingthe total download counts thus computed is supplied to the pricing indexcomputing system 13.

The total reproduction count computing system 12 of the pricing agent 1is structured illustratively as shown in FIG. 5. In the system 12, acommunication unit 71 is connected to the player 3 via the Internet 2and acquires reproduction information from the player 3. A reproductioninformation storage unit 72 stores the reproduction information receivedby the communication unit 71. A total reproduction count computationunit 73 computes a total reproduction count per content based on thereproduction information held in the reproduction information storageunit 72, and sends the computed counts to the pricing index computingsystem 13.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a typical pricing index computing system13. In the system 13, a pricing index computation unit 81 computes apricing index by applying a predetermined function both to the totaldownload count supplied by the total download count computing system 11and to the total reproduction count provided by the total reproductioncount computing system 12. A pricing index disclosure unit 82 disclosesthe pricing index, computed by the pricing index computation unit 81, toa third party (e.g., retailers of the contents in question) at a price.

Referring to a flowchart of FIG. 7, how the player 3 works will now bedescribed. In step S1, the communication unit 21 responds to a commandfrom the user and accesses accordingly the content server 4 over theInternet 2. In step S2, in response to another command from the user,the communication unit 21 designates contents to be downloaded. In stepS3, as specified by the user, the communication unit 21 requests thecontent server 4 to download over the Internet 2 the contents designatedin step S2.

When the request is made in step S3, the content server 4 proceeds totransmit download data to the player 3 in step S24, as will be describedlater, in a flowchart of FIG. 8. In step S4, the communication unit 21waits for the download data to be received from the content server 4over the Internet 2.

With the download data received, the communication unit 21 feeds contentdata made of the received data to the content storage unit 22 and anysupplementary information attached to the contents to the supplementaryinformation storage unit 25. In step S5, the content storage unit 22 andsupplementary information storage unit 25 accommodate respectively thedownload data and the supplementary information received from thecommunication unit 21.

In step S6, upon receipt of a reproduction command from the user, thereproduction unit 23 retrieves and reproduces the content data from thecontent storage unit 22. That is, a piece of music represented by thecontents is audibly output by means of built-in speakers. When thereproduction unit 23 carries out the reproduction, the reproductiondetection unit 24 detects the fact that reproduction is taking place.

When a reproduction detection signal is input from the reproductiondetection unit 24, the reproduction information generation unit 26retrieves the following: the supplementary information attached to thecontents in question, from the supplementary information storage unit25; reproduction location information detected by the reproductionlocation detection unit 27; and player information set in the playerinformation setting unit 28. In step S7, the reproduction informationgeneration unit 26 generates reproduction information based on theretrieved information. The reproduction information thus generated issent by the communication unit 21 to the total reproduction countcomputing system 12 of the pricing agent 1 over the Internet 2.

Referring to the flowchart of FIG. 8, how the content server 4 workswill now be described. In step S21, the control unit 46 of the contentserver 4 monitors the output of the communication unit 45 and checks tosee if the server 4 is accessed by the player 3. The control unit 46waits for the server 4 to be accessed by the player 3. As describedabove, when the player 3 has gained access to the content server 4 instep S1 of FIG. 7, an access signal attesting to the access is sent fromthe player 3.

Upon receipt of the access signal via the communication unit 45, thecontrol unit 46 reaches step S22 and checks to see if a content downloadrequest is received from the player 3. As mentioned earlier, the playerrequests downloading of contents in step S3 of FIG. 7. In that case, adownload request signal is transmitted by the player 3 to the contentserver 4 over the Internet 2. If the control unit 46 judges that acontent download request has been received through the communicationunit 45, the processing goes to step S23 from step S22. In step S23, thecontrol unit 46 causes the download data generation unit 44 to generatedownload data regarding the contents requested by the player 3.

Under control of the control unit 46, the download data generation unit44 reads content data about the designated contents from the contentstorage unit 41, retrieves supplementary information attached to thecontents from the supplementary information storage unit 42, and reads akeyword, if any, that matches the contents from the keyword setting unit43. The download data generation unit 44 then generates download data bycombining the content data, supplementary information and keyword, andsupplies the generated data to the communication unit 45.

In step S24, the control unit 46 causes the communication unit 45 totransmit over the Internet 2 the download data from the download datageneration unit 44 to the player 3 that has requested downloading of thecontents. The download data are placed into the content storage unit 22and supplementary information storage unit 25 of the player 3 in step S5of FIG. 7, as described above.

With the download data transmitted as described to the player 3, theprocessing reaches step S25 and the control unit 46 transmits to thetotal download count computing system 11 of the pricing agent 1 anotification that the contents have been reproduced, along with thesupplementary information and keyword associated with the contents. StepS25 is followed by step S21 and subsequent steps are repeated.

Referring to a flowchart of FIG. 9, how the total download countcomputing system 11 works will now be described. In step S41, thecommunication unit 61 waits for the supplementary information andkeyword associated with the downloaded contents to be transferred fromthe content server 4. That is, as described, the content server 4, afterdownloading the contents to the player 3, in step S25 in FIG. 8,transmits the supplementary information and keyword relevant to thedownloaded content to the total download count computing system 11. Instep S41, the communication unit 61 of the total download countcomputing system 11 checks to see if the supplementary information andthe keyword have been transferred. If the information and keyword inquestion are judged to be transferred, step S42 is reached in which thereceived supplementary information and keyword are stored into thestorage unit 62. At this point, the storage unit 62 increments by 1 aninternal counter value indicating the number of times the contents ofinterest have been downloaded.

In step S43, the total download count computation unit 63 checks to seeif a total download count transfer request has been received from thepricing index computing system 13. If no such request is judged to bereceived, step S41 is reached again and subsequent steps are repeated.If in step S43 a total download count transfer request is judged to bereceived from the pricing index computing system 13, step S44 isreached. In step S44, based on the counter value, supplementaryinformation and keyword held in the storage unit 62, the total downloadcount computation unit 63 computes a total download count of thedesignated contents (the total number of times the contents in questionhave been downloaded from the content servers 4-1 through 4-k). Thetotal download count computation unit 63 transmits the computed totaldownload count along with the supplementary information and keyword tothe pricing index computing system 13. Thereafter, control is returnedto step S41 and subsequent steps are repeated.

Referring to a flowchart of FIG. 10, how the total reproduction countcomputing system 12 of the pricing agent 1 works will now be described.In step S51, the communication unit 71 of the total reproduction countcomputing system 12 waits for arrival of the supplementary information,reproduction location information, and player information which apply tothe reproduced contents and which are transmitted by the player 3 instep S7 of FIG. 7. Upon receipt of the expected information, thecommunication unit 71 forwards the received information to thereproduction information storage unit 72. On receiving the supplementaryinformation, reproduction location information, and player informationfrom the communication unit 71, in step S52, the reproductioninformation storage unit 72 stores the received information andincrements by 1 a counter value representing the total number of timesthe contents in question have been reproduced.

In step S53, the total reproduction count computation unit 73 checks tosee if a total reproduction count transfer request is received from thepricing index computing system 13. If no such request is judged to bereceived, step S51 is reached again and subsequent steps are repeated.If in step S53 a total reproduction count transfer request is judged tobe received from the pricing index computing system 13, the processingreaches step S54. In step S54, based on the information held in thereproduction information storage unit 72, the total reproduction countcomputation unit 73 computes the total number of times the designatedcontents have been reproduced (the total number of times the contents inquestion have been reproduced by the players 3-1 through 3-n). The totalreproduction count thus computed is transmitted to the pricing indexcomputing system 13 together with the supplementary information,reproduction location information, and player information associatedwith the contents of interest. Thereafter, control is returned to stepS51 and subsequent steps are repeated.

Referring to a flowchart of FIG. 11, how the pricing index computingsystem 13 performs its pricing index computing process will now bedescribed. In step S61, the pricing index computation unit 81 acquires atotal download count from the total download count computing system 11and a total reproduction count from the total reproduction countcomputing system 12. In step S62, the pricing index computation unit 81selects one of a plurality of pricing functions (e.g., a linear pricingfunction and nonlinear pricing function) used to compute pricingindexes. In step S63, the pricing index computation unit 81 applies thetotal download count and total reproduction count to the selectedpricing function in order to compute a pricing index.

In step S64, the pricing index computed by the pricing index computationunit 81 is supplied to the pricing index disclosure unit 82 for storage.In step S65, the pricing index disclosure unit 82 discloses the storedpricing index to a third party.

A more specific example of computing a pricing index is described below.It is assumed here that the total download count of particular musiccontents (i.e., amount of supply) is represented by “NDWN,” the totalreproduction count of the contents (amount of demand) by “NPLY,” areference price of the contents by “SRP,” and a going price of thecontents (pricing index) by “Going.”

As long as the balance between the total download count “NDWN” and thetotal reproduction count “NPLY” remains within a predetermined range,the pricing index “Going” is considered equal to the reference price“SRP.” Generally, if the total download count “NDWN” becomes greaterthan the total reproduction count “NPLY,” that means supply surpassesdemand and that the pricing index “Going” has become lower than thereference price “SRP.” On the other hand, if the total download count“NDWN” becomes less than the total reproduction count “NPLY,” that meanssupply is falling behind demand and that the pricing index “Going” hasbecome higher than the reference price “SRP.”

On the basis of the above principles, a linear pricing function isapplied to the total download count “NDWN” and to the total reproductioncount “NPLY” in order to compute the pricing index “Going” in thisexample.

The linear pricing function may be defined as follows:Going=SRP×F(NPLY,NDWN)In the expression above, the value F is given asF=(NPLY/NDWN)×0.05With the above expressions in use, if the contents of interest have beenreproduced 100 times and downloaded five times within a predeterminedperiod, then the value F is 1 as given by the following expression:F=(100/5)×0.05=1In the above case, the pricing index “Going” becomes equal to thereference price “SRP.”

By contrast, if the contents in question have been reproduced 200 timesand downloaded five times within a predetermined period, the value F is2 as given by the following expression:F=(200/5)×0.05=2In this case, the pricing index “Going” is twice the reference price“SRP.”

If the contents have been reproduced once and downloaded five times,then the value F is 0.01 as given by the following expression:F=(⅕)×0.05=0.01In this case, the pricing index “Going” is one percent of the referenceprice “SRP.”

When the linear pricing function is applied as described above, thepricing index can fluctuate wildly depending on the total download countand total reproduction count. This disadvantage may be circumvented byutilizing a nonlinear pricing function as follows:

Going = SRP + G(NPLY, NDWN) × SRP      = SRP(1 + G(NPLY, NDWN)In the expression above, the value G is given asG=(√{square root over ( )}((NPLY/NDWN)×0.05)−5)/10

If the value “NPLY” is 10,000 and the value “NDWN” is 5, then the valueG is 0.5 as given by the following expression:

$G = {{\left( {{\sqrt{\;}\left( {\left( {10,{000/5}} \right) \times 0.05} \right)} - 5} \right)/10} = {{\left( {10 - 5} \right)/10} = {{5/10} = 0.5}}}$In the above case, the pricing index “Going” is 1.5 (=1+0.5) times thevalue “SRP.”

If the value “NPLY” is 1 and the value “NDWN” is 5, then the value G is−0.49 as given by the following expression:

$G = {{\left( {{\sqrt{\;}\left( {{1/5} \times {5/100}} \right)} - 5} \right)/10}\mspace{20mu} = {{\left( {{1/10} - 5} \right)/10} = {{{- 4.9}/10} = {- 0.49}}}}$In this case, the pricing index “Going” is 0.51 (=1−0.49) times thereference price “SRP.”

The computations involving the functions may be carried out as needed,or the results of the computations may be listed in advance in a tablethat may be referenced later for retrieval.

How total download counts are weighted will now be described. Inobtaining an overall download count of certain contents, it may not bepractical simply to add up a total download count for commercial use(e.g., at a marketing site) and a total download count fornon-commercial use (at a hobby site) without weighting the counts. Aweighting process, if carried out, ensures accurate overall downloadcount acquisition.

It is assumed here that the total download count for commercial use isrepresented by “NDWNSell” and the total download count fornon-commercial use by “NDWNHobby. It is also assumed that a weightingfunction H is applied to the total download count “NDWNSell,” that aweighting function I is applied to the total download count “NDWNHobby,”and that the sum of the counts thus weighted represents the totaldownload count “NDWN” treated with the above-mentioned linear ornonlinear pricing function. In that case, the total download count“NDWN” is defined by the following expression:NDWN=H(NDWNSell)+I(NDWNHobby)

Illustratively, if the total download count “NDWNSell” at a commercialsite is weighted 100 times as high as the total download count“NDWNHobby” at a non-commercial site, then the total download count“NDWN” is defined by the following expression:NDWN=100×NDWNSell+NDWNHobbyNaturally, such weighting may also be applied to any total downloadcount pertaining to three or more sites.

Total reproduction counts may be weighted in like manner. Weighting insuch cases is also applicable to the amounts of demand relevant to threeor more sites.

Weighting may also apply to regions and networks. Illustratively, thetotal download counts of a low-priority region (e.g., country) may berepresented by “NDWNCountry,” “NDWNSellCountry” and “NDWNHobbyCountry,”and its total reproduction count by “NPLYCountry; the total downloadcounts of a high-priority region (e.g., urban area) may be representedby “NDWNUrban,” “NDWNSellUrban” and “NDWNHobbyUrban,” and its totalreproduction count by “NPLYUrban.” Each of these counts may be subjectedto a suitable weighting function.

Pricing agents 1 may be set up country by country, region by region, andarea by area. If the agents are established in such a distributedmanner, it is possible to compute an integrated, global pricing indexbased on the counts gathered from them. FIG. 12 is a block diagram of atypical network system for such index integration. In thisconfiguration, pricing agents 1-1 through 1-m and a meta-pricing agent91 are connected to the Internet 2. The meta-pricing agent 91 acquirespricing indexes from the pricing agents 1-1 through 1-m and integratesthe collected indexes into a global pricing index.

FIG. 13 is a block diagram of the meta-pricing agent 91. In the agent91, a storage unit 102 stores pricing indexes supplied by the pricingagents 1-1 through 1-m over the Internet 2, together with suchinformation as a user count, a total content download count and a totaldownload reproduction count from each pricing agent 1. A resultcomputation unit 101 computes performance results of the pricing agents1-1 through 1-m acquired over a predetermined period and stored in thestorage unit 102. The computed results are stored in the storage unit102. Based on the results thus computed by the result computation unit101, a function generation unit 103 generates a performance evaluationfunction for evaluating the performance of each pricing agent 1. Alsobased on data from each pricing agent 1, the function generation unit103 generates a new pricing function and stores it in the storage unit102.

A disclosure unit 105 retrieves the performance results computed by theresult computation unit 101, the pricing function generated by thefunction generation unit 103 and, if necessary, performance evaluationfunctions from the storage unit 102. The information thus retrieved issupplied to the pricing agents 1-1 through 1-m. A pricing indexcomputation unit 104 causes a pricing function generated by the functiongeneration unit 103 and stored in the storage unit 102 to be reflectedin a pricing index computation process that is carried out by themeta-pricing agent 91. This process is equivalent to what is performedby the pricing index computation unit 81 of the pricing agent 1.

Referring to flowcharts of FIGS. 14 and 15, how the network system ofFIG. 12 works will now be described. The steps in the flowchart of FIG.14 indicate processing by the pricing agent 1, and the steps in theflowchart of FIG. 15 denote processing by the meta-pricing agent 91.

How the pricing agent 1 operates is described below with reference toFIG. 14. In step S81, the pricing index computation unit 81 of thepricing agent 1 acquires various parameters from the disclosure unit 105of the meta-pricing agent 91. The parameters include performanceresults, a new pricing function, a performance evaluation function, anda global pricing index, to be transmitted by the meta-pricing agent 91in steps S94 and S97 as will be described later. In step S82, thepricing index computation unit 81 establishes a pricing function forcomputing a pricing index on the basis of the parameters acquired instep S81. Using the pricing function thus established, the pricing indexcomputation unit 81 carries out a pricing index computing process.

In step S83, the pricing index computation unit 81 transmits to themeta-pricing agent 91 the pricing function established above, thepricing index obtained by use of the pricing function, the number ofusers, a total content download count, a total content reproductioncount, and an applicable period of time.

In step S91, the storage unit 102 of the meta-pricing agent 91 acquiresand accommodates such data as pricing functions, pricing indexes, usercounts, total content download counts, total content reproductioncounts, and applicable periods provided by the pricing agents 1-1through 1-m. In step S92, the result computation unit 101 computesperformance results of each pricing agent by comparing a given pricingagent with other pricing agents in terms of user counts and totalcontent download counts during one predetermined period or another. Theresults of the computations are fed to the storage unit 102 for storage.

The performance results of the pricing agent 1 are explained below. Thepricing agent 1 plays a role much like that of an appraiser at anantique shop. That is, the pricing agent awards market values tocommonly accepted commercial products (i.e., contents). The results ofsuch performance by a pricing agent 1 are typically determined by thetotal download count of a given product (contents) having a pricingindex (price) set by the agent in question.

Alternatively, the performance results of a pricing agent may bedetermined by checking whether or not a given piece of music sold at apricing index set by the agent has been actually used. Illustratively,where digital music content data are encrypted and distributed over theInternet 2, actually hearing the music requires procuring a key to theencryption. The performance results are thus obtained by finding out thedistributed amount of keys to decrypt the music data. In that case, themeta-pricing agent 91 is connected to a key management center thatdistributes decryption keys. The agents' performance is evaluated on thebasis of data from that management center.

There may be a case where a first pricing agent 1 sets a pricing index Awhile a second pricing agent 1 sets a pricing index B for the same pieceof music. In that case, one of the two pricing agents may be consideredthe better if its pricing index is adopted as the going price of themusic data more often than the other pricing index.

It is also possible to obtain a standard deviation of various goingprices statistically to see which of the two pricing indexes A and B isthe closer to the standard deviation. The closer index represents thebetter performance result.

Performance results may also be weighted when evaluated. For example,suppose that a marketing area “a” covered by a pricing agent thatpresented a pricing index A has a population of one million while amarketing area “b” covered by a pricing agent that presented a pricingindex B has a population of 10,000. Suppose also that 200 peopleactually bought at the pricing index A in the marketing area “a” whereas100 people bought at the pricing index B in the marketing area “b,” withno other trans-actions of the same product made at any other price. Inthat case, in terms of the actual number of products sold, the pricingagent that presented the pricing index A apparently achieved betterresults than the other pricing agent. With a difference in populationconcentration between the two areas taken into account, however, thepricing agent that presented the pricing index A triggered purchases of200 people out of the population of one million, compared with 100people among 10,000 who bought at the pricing index B presented by theother pricing agent. This means that the pricing agent that establishedthe pricing index B was 50 times as good in performance as the otherpricing agent that set the pricing index A.

Whereas the examples above were shown dealing with distribution of musicdata, the same pricing agent may achieve different performance resultsin different categories of offered contents. Illustratively, a pricingagent may excel in pricing video information but not music information.Furthermore, the same pricing agent may give different performanceresults for different genres of music information such as classic, jazz,and rock and roll.

Under such circumstances, performance results may be obtained in twokinds: by-category results, and overall results integrating allcategories. This will ensure more accurate evaluation of the performanceresults given by pricing agents.

Categories may alternatively be established from the viewpoint ofcontent receivers and not of content providers. Illustratively,performance results may be computed according to such categories as age,sex, and occupation. The results may be obtained separately for such agebrackets as younger than 20 years old, 20 to 40 years old, and over 40.Comparing the performance results between the different age bracketswill yield a distinctive characteristic of the pricing agent inquestion: it may do well with the younger generation but not withelderly people. Another pricing agent may turn out to do well with bothsexes but not with the women only.

In the manner described, the differences in performance between thepricing agents are detected with respect to different categories ofofferings. Illustratively, a first pricing agent may be judged toprovide persuasive pricing indexes in certain male-oriented categoriesof music (i.e., doing well with targeted male customers) but not in,say, the category of preserved food.

In step S93, the function generation unit 103, based on the dataacquired from each pricing agent 1 and stored in the storage unit 102,generates a performance evaluation function for evaluating theperformance of each pricing agent and a new pricing function designed toallow the agent in question to achieve better results. The performanceevaluation functions and pricing functions are fed to the storage unit102 for storage.

The performance evaluation function signifies a function that denotesthe proportion of customers of an entire population in a given marketingarea, such as 200 people among the population of one million, or 100people among 10,000. A performance evaluation function is set for eachpredetermined period subject to scrutiny. It follows that extending orcontracting any such period translates into modifying the correspondingperformance evaluation function.

In step S94, the disclosure unit 105 transfers performance results, anew pricing function and, if necessary, a performance evaluationfunction from the storage unit 102 to each pricing agent 1 over theInternet 2. Each pricing agent 1 receives the transmitted data asparameters in step S81 of FIG. 14 as described above. In step S82, eachpricing agent sets a pricing function based on the received parametersand computes a pricing index through the use of that pricing function.The performance evaluation function is used by each pricing agent toevaluate its own performance.

Each pricing agent may set a pricing function adjusted to its own rangeof processing by modifying some of the discretionary parametersconstituting the pricing function sent from the meta-pricing agent 91.Such modification of parameters is effected in consideration of thecharacteristics (by region or by network) specific to the range ofprocessing by the pricing agent in question. If its performance resultsare good, a pricing agent 1 may continue using its own current pricingfunction and disregard the pricing function sent from the meta-pricingagent 91.

Each pricing agent may also modify its pricing function by weightdepending on the range it covers. For example, suppose that theproportion of commercial sites on a network of interest covered by agiven pricing agent is greater than on other networks. In that case, thetotal reproduction count for commercial use on the network of interestmay be given a less weight than the total reproduction count fornon-commercial use on that network.

More specifically, if “H (weighting function)=NDWNsell”×100 and“I=NDWNHobby,” then the weighting may be modified illustratively so that“H=NDWNsell×100” and “I=NDWNHobby×5.” The modification causes “NDWNsell”to be weighted less than “NDWNHobby” in relative terms.

Likewise, in step S95, the meta-pricing agent 91 causes its pricingindex computation unit 104 to get the new pricing functions reflected informulating a function for pricing the agent 91 itself. In step S96, thepricing index computation unit 104 computes a global pricing index basedon the pricing index of each pricing agent 1. More specifically, thepricing indexes of the pricing agents 1-1 through 1-m are suitablyweighted before being added up and averaged to provide a global pricingindex. In step S97, the disclosure unit 105 transmits to each pricingagent 1 the global pricing index thus computed by the pricing indexcomputation unit 104 and stored in the storage unit 102. On the basis ofthe global pricing index received, each pricing agent 1 again modifiesits pricing function. Needless to say, the global pricing index computedin the manner described may be disclosed to a third party at a price.

A third party may get area-wise, country-wise or region-wise pricingindexes as well as global pricing indexes and may use them as a basisfor determining specific selling prices.

Each pricing agent 1 may add global conditions to its local conditionsspecific to the area, region or country it belongs to and may employ theextended range of conditions in formulating a pricing index relevant tothe area, region or country of the agent in question. This helps acquiremore accurate pricing indexes.

As described, the suitable setup according to the invention computes thetotal number of times information contents have been downloaded over thenetwork, the contents being of a type that may be copied electronicallyin a practically limitless fashion. The total download count thuscalculated represents an amount of supply of the contents in question.Additionally, the suitable setup according to the invention computes thetotal reproduction count as an amount of demand of the contents inquestion. This makes it possible accurately to compute a pricing indexrelevant to the contents of interest.

Illustratively, tangible object pricing systems such as the onedisclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-open No. Hei 11-196113 may beconnected to the Internet 2 representing the network in FIG. 12. In sucha case, the meta-pricing agent 91 may be arranged to gather informationfrom these systems in computing global pricing indexes.

Although the examples above were shown handling pricing indexesapplicable to music, this is not limitative of the invention. Theinvention may also apply to a scheme for computing pricing indexes aboutdiverse contents which can be copied electronically and whose supply anddemand are difficult to determine in the same manner as tangle objects.

Computers may be used to constitute part or all of the total downloadcount computing system 11, total reproduction count computing system 12,and pricing index computing system 13 in the pricing agent 1; thepricing index computation unit 81 and pricing index disclosure unit 82in the pricing index computing system 13; and the result computationunit 101, storage unit 102, function generation unit 103, pricing indexcomputation unit 104, and disclosure unit 105 in the meta-pricing agent91. Illustratively, the pricing index computing system 13 may beconstituted by a computer as shown in FIG. 16.

In the system 13 of FIG. 16, a CPU 121 performs diverse steps orprocesses according to programs held in a ROM 122 and a storage unit128. A RAM 123 accommodates various programs and data needed by the CPU121 in carrying out its processing. The CPU 121, ROM 122 and RAM 123 areinterconnected by a bus 124 and also connected to an I/O interface 125.The I/O interface 125 is connected to an input unit 126 made of akeyboard and a mouse; to an output unit 127 constituted by an LCD, a CRTand/or speakers; to a storage unit 128 composed of a hard disc drive orthe like; and to a communication unit 129 communicating with theInternet 2.

The I/O interface 125 is connected to a drive 130 through which programsare installed into the system. The drive 130 may be loaded with amagnetic disc 141, an optical disc 142, a magneto-optical disc 143, or asemiconductor memory 144. The diverse steps or processes mentioned aboveare carried out by the CPU 121 running relevant programs (i.e.,software).

The steps or processes described above may be executed either byhardware or by software. Where the steps are to be carried out bysoftware, relevant programs constituting the software need to beinstalled either in a dedicated hardware component of a computer, orloaded from a suitable program storage medium into, say, ageneral-purpose personal computer capable of implementing variousfunctions based on the programs installed therein.

As shown in FIG. 16, the program storage medium may be offered as apackage medium independent of the computer: a magnetic disc 141(including floppy discs), an optical disc 142 (including CD-ROM(Compact-Disc read only memory)) and DVD (digital versatile disc), amagneto-optical disc 143 (including MD (Mini-disc)), or a semiconductormemory 144, all carrying the relevant programs provided for the user.Alternatively, the program storage medium may be offered as apreinstalled component of the computer such as the ROM 122 or a harddisc drive included in the storage unit 128, each containing thenecessary programs.

In this specification, the steps which are preserved on the programstorage medium and which describe the programs to be executed representnot only processes that are carried out in the depicted sequence (i.e.,on a time series basis) but also those that are conducted parallelly orindividually.

Also in this specification, the expression “system” is construed asrepresentative of a whole setup constituted by a plurality of componentdevices.

As described and through the use of the first information processingapparatus of the invention, the first information processing method, andthe program stored on the first storage medium, the number of timesspecific information contents have been downloaded and the number oftimes the contents in question have been reproduced are initiallycomputed. A pricing index for the information contents is thencalculated on the basis of the reproduction count and the download countthus computed. This makes it possible to compute accurately and quicklypricing indexes of the information contents that are exchanged over anetwork.

By use of the second information processing apparatus of the invention,the second information processing method, and the program stored on thesecond storage medium, a notification saying that particular informationcontents have been transmitted over the network is sent to anotherinformation processing apparatus which counts the number of times theinformation contents in question have been transmitted. This makes itpossible to compute accurately and quickly a download countrepresentative of the amount of supply of the information contents thatare exchanged over the network.

Through the use of the third information processing apparatus of theinvention, the third information processing method, and the programstored on the third storage medium, a notification saying that specificinformation contents have been reproduced is transmitted over thenetwork to another information processing apparatus which counts thenumber of times the information contents of interest have beenreproduced. This makes it possible to compute accurately and quickly areproduction count representative of the amount of demand for theinformation contents that are exchanged over the network.

As many apparently different embodiments of this invention may be madewithout departing from the spirit and scope thereof, it is to beunderstood that the invention is not limited to the specific embodimentsthereof except as defined in the appended claims.

1. An information processing apparatus, comprising: means for acquiringa download of information contents from a first information processingapparatus, the download of said information contents having a price, thefirst information processing apparatus incrementing a download countupon the download, means for holding said information contents acquiredby said means for acquiring; means for reproducing content data, basedon said information contents held by said means for holding; and meansfor transmitting a notification to a second information processingapparatus upon a reproduction, based on said information contents, ofsaid content data by said means for reproducing, said notificationinformation indicating a number of times that said content data has beenreproduced based on said information contents by said means forreproducing, a price for a subsequent download of said informationcontents being computed, after a transmission of the notification, as anonlinear function of the download count, and the information number oftimes; wherein the price for the subsequent download of said informationcontents is based on a ratio of the number of times to the downloadcount; wherein the nonlinear function is based on a linear function ofthe ratio of the download count to the number of times; and wherein theprice for the subsequent download of said information contents iscomputed as a function of a square root of a value, the value being afunction of the ratio of the download count to the number of times. 2.The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein saidmeans for holding further holds supplementary information attached tosaid information contents, and said means for transmitting furthertransmits said supplementary information to said second informationprocessing apparatus.
 3. An information processing method for a contentreproduction apparatus, the information processing method comprising:acquiring a download of information contents from a first informationprocessing apparatus, the download of said information contents having aprice, the first information processing apparatus incrementing adownload count upon the acquiring; holding said information contentsacquired in the acquiring in the content reproduction apparatus;reproducing content data with the content reproduction apparatus, basedon said information contents held in said holding; and transmitting,with the content reproducing apparatus, a notification to a secondinformation processing apparatus upon the reproducing, said notificationindicating a number of times that said content data has been reproducedin said reproducing, a price for a subsequent download of saidinformation contents being computed, after the transmitting, as anonlinear function of the download and the number of times; wherein theprice for the subsequent download of said information contents is basedon a ratio of the number of times to the download count; wherein thenonlinear function is based on a linear function of the ratio of thedownload count to the number of times; and wherein the price for thesubsequent download of said information contents is computed as afunction of a square root of a value, the value being a function of theratio of the download count to the number of times.
 4. A non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium storing computer executableinstructions, wherein the instructions, executed by a processor, causethe processor to perform a method comprising: acquiring a download ofinformation contents from a first information processing apparatus thedownload of said information contents having a price, the firstinformation processing apparatus incrementing a download count upon theacquiring; holding said information contents acquired in said acquiring;reproducing content data, based on said information contents held insaid holding; and transmitting a notification to a second informationprocessing apparatus upon said reproducing, said notification indicatinga number of times that said content data has been reproduced in saidreproducing, a price for a subsequent download of said informationcontents being computed, after the transmitting, as a nonlinear functionof the download and the number of times said content downloaded; whereinthe price for the subsequent download of said information contents isbased on a ratio of the number of times to the download count; whereinthe nonlinear function is based on a linear function of the ratio of thedownload count to the number of times; and wherein the price for thesubsequent download of said information contents is computed as afunction of a square root of a value, the value being a function of theratio of the download count to the number of times.
 5. An informationprocessing apparatus, comprising: an acquiring unit configured toacquire a download of information contents from a first informationprocessing apparatus the download of said information contents having aprice, the first information processing apparatus incrementing adownload count upon the download; a holding unit configured to hold saidinformation contents acquired by said acquiring unit; a reproducing unitconfigured to reproduce content data based on said information contentsheld by said holding unit; and a transmitting unit configured totransmit a notification to a second information processing apparatusupon a reproduction, based on said information contents, of said contentdata by said reproducing unit, said notification indicating a number oftimes that said content data has been reproduced based on saidinformation contents by said reproducing unit, a price for a subsequentdownload of said information contents being computed, after atransmission of the notification, as a nonlinear function of thedownload and the number of times wherein the price for the subsequentdownload of said information contents is based on a ratio of the numberof times to the download count; wherein the nonlinear function is basedon a linear function of the ratio of the download count to the number oftimes; and wherein the price for the subsequent download of saidinformation contents is computed as a function of a square root of avalue, the value being a function of the ratio of the download count tothe number of times.
 6. The information processing apparatus accordingto claim 5, wherein said holding unit is configured to holdsupplementary information attached to said information contents, andsaid transmitting unit is configured to transmit said supplementaryinformation to said second information processing apparatus.
 7. Aninformation processing method for a pricing apparatus, comprising:acquiring a notification, at the pricing apparatus, indicating a numberof times that information contents have been downloaded from a firstinformation processing apparatus to a second information processingapparatus, a download of the information contents with having a price;receiving a notification at the pricing apparatus from the secondinformation processing apparatus indicating a number of times thatcontent data has been reproduced based on the information contents, thenotification also indicating a location of the second informationprocessing apparatus; storing the location of the second informationprocessing apparatus; and computing, with the pricing apparatus, a pricefor a subsequent download of the information contents as a nonlinearfunction of the number of times that the information contents have beendownloaded, the number of times the content data has been reproducedbased on the information contents, and based on the location of thesecond information processing apparatus; wherein the price for thesubsequent download of said information contents is based on a ratio ofthe number of times to the download count; wherein the nonlinearfunction is based on a linear function of the ratio of the downloadcount to the number of times; and wherein the price for the subsequentdownload of said information contents is computed as a function of asquare root of a value, the value being a function of the ratio of thedownload count to the number of times.
 8. A non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium storing computer executableinstructions, wherein the instructions, executed by a processor, causethe processor to perform a method comprising: acquiring a notificationindicating a number of times that information contents have beendownloaded from a first information processing apparatus to a secondinformation processing apparatus, a download of the information contentshaving a price; receiving a notification from the second informationprocessing apparatus indicating a number of times that content data hasbeen reproduced based on the information contents, the notification alsoindicating a location of the second information processing apparatus;storing the location of the second information processing apparatus; andcomputing a price for a subsequent download of the information contentsas a nonlinear function of the number of times that the informationcontents have been downloaded, the number of times the content data hasbeen reproduced based on the information contents, and based on thelocation of the second information processing apparatus; wherein theprice for the subsequent download of said information contents is basedon a ratio of the number of times to the download count; wherein thenonlinear function is based on a linear function of the ratio of thedownload count to the number of times; and wherein the price for thesubsequent download of said information contents is computed as afunction of a square root of a value, the value being a function of theratio of the download count to the number of times.
 9. An informationprocessing apparatus, comprising: a communication unit configured toreceive a download notification indicating a number of times thatinformation contents have been downloaded from a first informationprocessing apparatus to a second information processing apparatus, andto receive a reproduction notification from the second informationprocessing apparatus indicating a number of times that content data hasbeen reproduced based on the information contents, the reproductionnotification also indicating a location of the second informationprocessing apparatus, a download of the information contents having aprice; a storing unit for storing the location of the second informationprocessing apparatus; and a processor configured to compute a price fora subsequent download of the information contents as a nonlinearfunction of the number of times that the information contents have beendownloaded, the number of times the content data has been reproducedbased on the information contents, and based on the location of thesecond information processing apparatus; wherein the price for thesubsequent download of said information contents is based on a ratio ofthe number of times to the download count; wherein the nonlinearfunction is based on a linear function of the ratio of the downloadcount to the number of times; and wherein the price for the subsequentdownload of said information contents is computed as a function of asquare root of a value, the value being a function of the ratio of thedownload count to the number of times.
 10. The information processingapparatus according to claim 1, wherein the price for the subsequentdownload of said information contents is based on a number of times saidinformation contents have been downloaded for commercial use and anumber of times said information contents have been downloaded fornon-commercial use.
 11. The information processing apparatus accordingto claim 1, wherein the price for the subsequent download of saidinformation contents is based on a number of times said informationcontents have been downloaded in an urban area.